Investvine-Oct 19
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on October 18 signed a seven-year oil exploration deal with an Israeli firm in a bid to develop the country’s own energy sources amid sharp swings in oil prices in the international market. The deal is said only to be an “initial” one with the company, Tel Aviv-based Ratio Petroleum Ltd.
Ratio Petroleum will now explore Area 4, which covers 416,000 hectares across the East Palawan Basin, for potential oil and gas resources. The project is expected to cost at least $34.35 million, including data gathering and drilling activities over the contract period.
“The President has been very clear — our country needs to attain energy security and sustainability at the soonest possible time. We are currently experiencing how our dependence on importation has left us at the mercy of price movements in the global oil markets,” Philippine energy minister Alfonso Cusi said. “We need to boost the exploration and development of our own energy resources, and the awarding of the petroleum service contract to Ratio Petroleum is a step in the right direction,” he added.
The Philippines, a net importer of oil, is currently feeling the heat of rising oil prices. Currently standing at between $69 and $79 per barrel, depending on the blend, some analysts see them to spike above $100 per barrel towards the end of 2018 or by early 2019, as US President Donald Trump’s sanctions against Iran, a major crude exporter, take effect in November.
To reduce expensive oil imports, the Duterte government is also working on a framework on possible joint oil exploration with China in the resource-rich West Philippine Sea, the portion of the hotly disputed South China Sea that the Philippines claims.
Ratio Petroleum is focusing on under-explored sea basins where significant oil discoveries had not yet been made. Currently, the company has projects in the Levant Basin in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Israel, as well as offshore operations off Malta, off Guyana-Surinam and off the coast of Ireland.
‘http://investvine.com/philippines-signs-deal-with-israeli-oil-exploration-firm/
